The common wild Glitter lives in cold weather and high obscurity. It is normally spotted during winter time in Europe, North America and parts of Asia. It feeds on human window-shoppers of feminine gender. The common Glitter’s annual active season is a very short one-  comes January, it retires to its hibernation and isn’t expected to show any sign of life until 10-11 months later.

Even though we have no scientific proofs to the theory, many experts believe the Common Glitter is genetically related to the Sailor-Striped-Shirt for many resemblances in the two species behavior. The Sailor-Shirt appears in spring mostly in Europe, and is only active for a short period as well (April-June).

During rough times, some believed the common Glitter and the Sailor-Shirt to be extinct. Fortunately, they’ve proven to be strong of nature, surprising wildlife experts every year anew.

Back in October, Mr Issues and I had made a deal. In an attempt not to fall in any commercial traps and respect our budget, we’ve decided that this year for Christmas we’ll offer each other books. It’s mind opening, it’s cute and it’s not expensive! Plus, we don’t really NEED anything in particular to be happy… Right? Right.

Only back in October we didn’t take into consideration the December gold-rush. That well-oiled machine that we, poor consumers, don’t stand a chance in front of. The pressure is just to great to bear.

Coming November-December, special edition “gifts magazines” are hidden in every newspaper you buy. Huge billboards attack your eyes and noumerous emails from brands and departement stores offer you better life after a visit to their cash registers. Wheather you can afford it or not, a certain itch starts bugging you. An itch only a new black glitter-dress for Christmas eve  can calm down…

Luckily, Paris’s biggest department stores (Galeries Lafayette, Printemps, Le Bon Marché and BHV) are here to help you get rid of your irritation. This year, the holiday windows were already in place on November 4th, drawing thousands of parents and children every day to see the marionettes and the beautiful lights. Between November 10th and December 23rd those stores double the number of daily visitors and realize 25% of their annual profits. In the last two Week-ends of the year 200,000 people pass in Galeries Lafayette each day (of course, to facilitate our shopping, stores are open on Sundays in December).

Proving your love to your friends and family is an assencial part of the christmass spirit (and the more you love – the more you should pay). According to the AFP, even in difficult times of unstable economics, the average French is expected to spend 605 Euros on gifts and dinner this Christmas. 605 (Euros) X 65,447,374 (number of french aproximetly) = 39,595,661,270 €

Wow.

You know what?

Maybe a book isn’t such a good idea. After all, it’s Christmas… A new pair of Levi’s jeans, for example, will better demonstrate how much I care, non?  Or an IPad! Or both!

Chloe Moretz by Aitken Jolly, Wonderland

Wow… It’s been way too long since I took the time to discover a new magazine (too much work at the office, too cold outside to go to look for one, with the winter-clock the days are too short to do anything anyway… But these are only lame excuses).

Finaly, it was worth the wait. The latest addition to my library (or my huge pile of magazines) is Wonderland, a title that promises a lot and delivers just as much.

First of all, Wonderland’s inner division is very comfortable for the reader – the commercial ads are only in the very beginning. After them, it’s a big party for the eyes and the mind with numerous fashion spreads and finely arranged interviews (last issue’s covergirl is Chloe Moretz, the very talanted and intriguing 13 year-old actress form Kick-Ass).

Online, It seem that Wonderland is trying to stay somewhat of a mystery. On their web site you won’t find an “about” rubric, neither on their Facebook fan page… What I could find out is that’s a London based publication, founded in 2005 by Huw Gwyther (Publisher and Editor-in-chief).

Speaking of which, the only thing really missing from this magazine is the editor’s note, but I found a piece of interview that could maybe do the trick :

Huw Gwyther: ”I felt there was a gap in the market for a magazine covering all areas of contemporary culture and style – everything I’m interested in basically – but with a fun, tongue-in-cheek tone that never takes itself too seriously. It’s my ideal magazine… I want Wonderland to have something for everyone, and to reach as many people as possible. Above all Wonderland should be inspirational – not dry, or too serious – but constantly surprising, informative and always visually stimulating”.

Nicely said Mr Gwyther, but… In fact….  Please note that nothing beats a good old-fashioned Editor’s Note.

Living and working in Tel Aviv, Kobi Levi juggles a  footwear collection for men (Design Kitchen), a second line for women (Shoola) and a teaching job in “the Guild” – shoe design and production school.

When he does get a minute to rest, Kobi enjoys working some more, creating artistic footwear and publishing it in his blog.

“I always loved shoes and saw in them an interesting sculptural object. As a piece by itself and attached to legs or the body”, Kobi explains his unusual approach to shoes. ”I wanted to create a styling language of my own and show a humoristic way to look at shoes design. Also, the technical aspect of building these 3 dimensions forms gives me an opportunity to execute my creative fantasies with no compromises…”. Unleashed, Kobi’s fantasies do go a long way. Examples:

Some of your work can be interpreted as a certain critique on society, about women. Is there a hidden message behind your designs?

“In every work there’s a message and multiple layers…. Some will interpret “Blow” as turning the woman into a sexual object, but you can also look at it as a grotesque product that dishonors the user, not women. One way or another, it’s about society”.

Is there a demand to commercialize the “Crazy Shoes”? Are you planning on doing so?

“A lot. Many people are asking to buy or order these designs. Right now, I’m looking into making  limited editions. These are very complicated pieces so I don’t know really when it could be done. But in any case, I won’t give up the essence of the design just to increase production. The two will have to go hand in hand”.

By the way…  This is how Kobi’s “Normal” designs look like:

It was raining cats and dogs today in Paris, but Mr Issues and our good friend Mr J decided to drag me all the way across town to buy some art supplies (???). We got out of the metro in Place de la République, and found our selves in the middle of this:

As it turns out, the French people are willing to fight their government’s retirement reform even under heavy rain.

The art store wasn’t far away, but between the umbrellas, the flags, the megaphones and the policemen, we only got there after 20 long minutes, with wet socks and short tempers.
30 minutes later, we were all done in the store and back in the street. The demonstrators, on the other hand, didn’t go very far. In an attempt to avoid that red sea of people, we turned right at the first corner. And that’s how we discovered a new address with an electrical ambiance.

Losing Today is a young boutique (about 10 weeks old, according to the salesman), who offers unique vintage and new pieces in an exciting price range. It looks kind of small in the begining, but the hunt continues in the basement. For example: Coat – 70 euros, riding boots – 50, blouse – 19, wool pencil skirt – 29, jacket – 45, hand bags – 19-29, sweaters – 29-49, T-shirts – 25.

It certainly worth a visit. Maybe not on a demonstration day though…

LOSING TODAY
14 Rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris

Alber Elbaz pour H&M

Let me paint you a picture. It is  the morning of November 23rd. D-day – the collaboration between Lanvin and H&M is finaly out to the stores. In front of an H&M somewhere in the world dozens of hysterical clients, mostly girls, are gathered, fighting to be as close as possible to the entrance. Then the clock rings 9 AM  – the opening of the doors. Within seconds the shelves are empty of content, clothes are being thrown around every where, girls are screaming, fighting over a dress or a coat (oh, that Zebra coat…)…. Pfff… It’s only clothes, right ?

Now let me paint you a different picture. It’s the begining of the afternoon of a different day. A woman enters a luxurious boutique, let’s say Lanvin or Chanel on rue Saint-Honoré in Paris. “Bonjour”, says the seller, “Bonjour”, she replies. She looks around slowly, goes back and forth, tries on a pair of shoes or a dress or a coat. Finaly, she goes to the cash register, pays 1,500 euros for a bag or a jacket and walks away. Hmmm…

These last few days I saw many people declaring online that they are not one of those “fashion victims”. They will never fight for a dress in H&M with the mob. Yet, those same people, with their same average salary, could go in a high fashion house and buy (in payments) something they can’t afford. The question is “which of these two girls is more of a victim (I hate that word)”?

After years being categorized as children wear, the rubber boot had made a comeback into adults’ closet during the last few years. Its advantages are obvious – the rubber keeps your feet dry and, thanks to its high grip in the ground, prevents you from slipping and getting up close and personal with the pavement (… Yeap… I should know). But the rubber boot has one big flaw – chubby and bulky, it’s as elegant as a dairy farmer after a long day of work between his cows.

Shlomit Slavin, founder of the footwear label HOKI , understood the need in a new generation of rubber boots. From her home in Tel Aviv, along with her sister Mira Kaermely, she compromises fine design and rough material. Introducing the URBAN rubber boot:

Hoki boots 65-85 Euros.

Today’s newspapers are reporting with surprise about a mysterious coup in the french industry -  the luxury giant LVMH bought 17.1 % of Hermès’s shares, without Hermès even knowing about it ! By doing that, LVMH became the second most powerful share holder, right after the Hermès family. I believe this is a good opportunity to discuss LVMH, a one-of-a-kind octopus that touches your life and mine more then we might think.

Let me explain: a girl, we can call her Suzy, wakes up in the morning, takes a shower and gets dressed. Suzy puts on a set of kenzo lingerie, a dress from Céline, a pair of Marc Jacobs shoes and turns to the bathroom to perform her make-up routine. She applies a Guerlin foundation, mascara from Dior, a Make Up Forever lipstick and a Sephora blush.
On the way out she spritz herself with some Givenchy perfume, throws over a Donna Karen coat, grabs her Louis Vuitton bag and goes out the door.

Suzy adores fashion her taste in style is exquisite… She picked each and every one of these cherished possessions carefully. Do you think that she knows that all of her wardrobe and beauty products come from the same source? Do you think she would have bought them if she did? Probably not, and that’s what makes LVMH so powerful in the industry today. As powerful as 77,000 employees worldwide and an annual revenue of 17.053 billion Euros (net profit of 1.973 billion in 2009).

LVMH was created in 1987 after the wine group Moët Hennessy merged with the leather goods and fashion house Louis Vuitton. Over the years and after many taking-overs, the group grew to control more than 60 different labels, mostly in Fashion, beauty, wine and jewelry. The acquired companies keep their identities and maintain some kind of an autonomic activity, but they all report to the same headquarters. Practically speaking, you buy LVMH products all the time, without even knowing.

In the group’s little black book one might find all of the examples above plus Fendi, Emilio Pucci, Acqua di Parma, Benefit Cosmetics, Hublot, Zenith, Château d’Yquem, Loewe, StefanoBi, Dom Pérignon, Chaumet, Le Bon Marché, and the list goes on and on…

And the plot thickens when you go up a scale – the group Christian Dior owns 42 % of LVMH’s shares (wait, aren’t they supposed to compete ?). Both groups are under the control of a privet company – Group Arnault SAS who belongs to the french business man Mr. Bernard Arnault, chairman of both Christian Dior and LVMH. According to Forbes Magazine, Arnault is the world’s 7th richest person, with an estimated wealth of 27.5 billion Dollars (before the Hermes ambush).

Does it all sounds too complicated to you ? Maybe you should start reading the financial newspaper Les Echos. Can you guess who it belongs to ?

*hint : it’s a four-letters initials.

Christy Turlington, Natalia Vodianova and Karen Elson by Steven Meisel

My birthday’s coming up this weekend, and to celebrate the event “Mr. Issues” wanted to buy me a pair of shoes (he’s sweet).

We were going around in circles on the 5^th floor (shoes department) of Printemps, till something caught my eye: dark-red, medium heel Prada shoes with a bow… They were as pretty as the sunlight.

Sure, they were way out of our budget but he wanted me to have a pair of Prada and gave me the green light.

I could’ve just said “yes” and they were mine. But I didn’t. My brain (stupid organ) started hyperventilating. I was thinking too much about the money, and about the fact that they are beautiful on the shelf, but not extraordinary when you put them on (dear god, please forgive me). I thought about the fact that they aren’t really comfortable to wear (I can’t believe what I’m saying here!)…

Then, I put them down and turned away. Just like that. And I’m not even sorry! (though I’m having a hard time falling asleep ever since)

Is something wrong with me Doctor?

I was wondering online when I came across this outfit on Cos’s web site (*Info: Cos is the higher-quality label of Hennes & Mauritz, more known as H&M).

To the untrained eye, this would be a dress, but a closer look reveals another picture…

Like a wardrobe from IKEA, so is this dress from Cos (maybe it’s a swedish thing?) – You have to buy it by pieces. The sleeves come separately from the top, and the skirt isn’t really for sale, it’s only there for the catalog…  Never did a fashion company remind me more of a car thief  (: